Norton products.
I de-installed their anti-virus system using their recommended procedure as the pre-installed free trial period was about to expire. But it left behind some nasty stuff that protected me very thoroughly. Protecting me from being able to use FTP, or to use a new version of a browser, for example. For my own good, of course.
Because FTP was disabled, I couldn't access Norton's special removal tool to get rid of the cruft, as that had to be downloaded by, you guessed it, FTP.
Good that they provided such a thing, bad that the problem is so common that they had to. Very bad that they've known about the problem for ages, they just haven't bothered fixing it.
So manual surgery was needed on C:\windows\system32\drivers\. The first attempt disabled my Internet connection completely. I eventually got it working though, 6 hours of my time wasted on a piece of used food. But in the process of re-installing Firefox, I lost all my bookmarks, user names, cookies and passwords.
The picture is of Hallucigenia, an extinct animal of the Middle Cambrian. But I prefer to think of it as a Pet Hate.
Wednesday 9 September 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
www.ubuntu.com
Screw Norton.
Screw Windows.
Screw Micro$oft.
Procedure for new computers:
1. Get it connected
2. Uninstall Norton
3. Install AVG
Everyone will have their own solution Zoe, but mine is NOD32 Anti-Virus and JV Power Tools for the specific issues you've mentioned, CCleaner is a good tool also.
Procedure for new computers:
1. Decide if it will be dual boot Ubuntu/Windows or just Ubuntu.
2. Install Ubuntu accordingly.
I am certainly biased because for the most part my computers work regardless of OS, and I get to fix other people's systems. However, once I convince someone to go to Ubuntu, I rarely see their computer again.
Personally, I would run the defragmentation program in windows and then install a linux partition -
I recommend SuSE or Ubuntu.
Have you tried the Knoppix live CD??
Dr. B
It was trying to follow laserlight's procedure that got me into trouble.
The AVG installation routine uses FTP too, by the way. As does Zone Alarm.
Depending on which procedure we're talking about, following my procedure is highly likely, almost guaranteed, to get you in trouble. I didn't think that was one of those procedures, though. Apparently I'm a hero--I go where others cannot follow.
(muttered) I wonder what this thing is? Looks squamous and rugose. I know--I'll poke it with a stick and see what happens!
Re: A Pet Hate
Norton is squamous and rugose, indeed, as Pinky and the Brain are wont to declare in THE CONCRETE JUNGLE by C. Stross - a Creative Commons novella (i.e., 'the first one's free, little girl'). Read at goldengryphon daht com stroke Stross-Concrete daht html at your own risk.
Suggest you look into Iron srware daht net strok en stroke software_srware_iron daht php which is an open source freeware browser based on the same engine underlying FF 3.5, Google Chrome and Apple Safari, only faster, and without the 'phone home' bits Google stuffs into Chrome. Nicely fast compared to all the rest.
73s and best regards,
John Bartley K7AAY PDX OR USA
Post a Comment